Best Riccardo Muti moment at the CSO

We were hopeful for a good turnout when we heard that Maestro Muti was going to make his debut as the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s new music director with a free concert at Pritzker Pavilion on September 19. Hopeful, but realistic, since so much is made of classical music’s ever-shrinking share of the cultural consciousness. That may be the reality in the rest of the world, but not in our town, baby. The night turned into a rock-star moment for Muti, with tens of thousands of fans clustered inside and around the Pavilion, on the bridge, everywhere an ear could hear. The crowd-pleasing repertoire was performed with energetic verve, but it would not have mattered if the CSO had covered Lady Gaga. It was not just a Muti moment, it was a great Chicago moment, which only made the maestro’s sudden departure from Chicago due to illness shortly thereafter all the more heart-wrenching, though we’re looking forward to a happy ending with his planned return in the coming months.